Thank God I'm Atheist

A new PRRI survey reveals stark differences in how Americans view empathy, particularly across political parties and religious affiliations. Frank and Dan discuss the growing tendency among conservative Christians to characterize empathy as dangerous, the particularly troubling attitudes among white evangelicals, and why expanding empathy beyond one's own community is essential to a healthy society.
But first some news from the week... A Trump-voting pastor regrets his decision as immigration raids empty his church, Texas pastors take sides in the Senate race while a megachurch doubles as a polling place, Catholic officials try to rein in celebrity exorcists, an Ohio court strikes down school vouchers while Christian groups plan thousands of new schools, a Kenyan starvation cult leader is convicted in the deaths of hundreds, and an Ecuadorian priest is killed by a falling crucifix.

The pope speaks out against the death penalty as the Trump administration considers livestreaming an execution. Frank and Dan discuss the barbarism of capital punishment, the ethics of public executions, and the Catholic Church's long history of changing its supposedly unchanging moral positions.
But first some news! New polling shows British Christian nationalism is more about identity than actual Christianity, Trump goes after a Muslim Senate candidate in Michigan, Indonesia gets upset about Andrea Bocelli's past support for Israel, a far-right pastor calls for Mike Huckabee's execution, another rapture prediction comes and goes, and a Texas school pulls a girl from the lead in Little Shop of Horrors because she's playing a boy.
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Mormon leaders double down on their opposition to gambling, and young Mormons are losing their minds over being told to stay away from sports betting and prediction markets. Frank and Dan discuss the backlash, the church's longstanding rules against gambling, and the outrage of young Mormons discovering that their religion still expects them to follow its rules.
But as always, we first discuss some news... A study links Christian nationalism to lower cognitive ability, the Supreme Court turns away firefighters seeking religious vaccine exemptions, a Satanic prayer freaks out an Iowa town, religious hate crimes are rising in the UK, Pope Leo nudges the Catholic Church toward being nicer to divorced and LGBTQ Catholics, and disgraced televangelist Jim Bakker dies ("mmm... that's right...")

The Pentagon drops "atheist" as a military belief category, and Frank and Dan debate whether that creates much practical harm for atheist service members or whether the bigger problem is the message it sends about who the military considers worthy of recognition and accommodation.
But first there's some news of the week... Texas Christians brainstorming ways to make life harder for Muslims, Tim Tebow backs away from a sketchy Christian financial seminar operation, India tears into a mosque to make room for Hindu pilgrims, the EEOC sides with a Christian who refused to use a trans coworker's pronouns, a church leader mostly avoids punishment for beating a gay teenager during an exorcism, and Sean Feucht gets sued over where a donor's $250,000 actually went.

With the rise of the "spiritual but not religious" category, more people are turning to AI for spiritual guidance instead of pastors. What does it mean for people to seek spiritual, moral, and life guidance from a source that guides you toward an ever more personalized and isolated spiritual experience?
We also discuss: Noah's Ark hunters are digging around in Turkey again, a judge shuts down an attempt to weaken the Johnson Amendment, assisted dying gets voted down in England and Wales, New Zealand finally hits Gloriavale where it hurts, new Pew numbers show Mormon retention slipping, and Christians lose it over Meryl Streep being cast as the Christ-like lion in the new Narnia.
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